The Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) of the European Union will meet on Monday 15 July in Brussels. Finland will be represented by Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto. The FAC will discuss the situation in Iraq, Iran and the Central African Republic. The external dimension of migration will also be on the agenda. There will also be an informal lunch with the new Moldovan Foreign Minister.

Johanna Sumuvuori, State Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, is leading the Finnish delegation to a high-level conference for media freedom held in London on 10–11 July. The conference was convened by Jeremy Hunt, the UK Foreign Secretary.

Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland Pekka Haavisto will visit Sudan and several countries of the Red Sea and broader region over the course of the next weeks to discuss the situation in Sudan. He has received a mandate from High Representative/Vice-President Federica Mogherini to reach out, on behalf of the European Union, on both the situation in the country and on how the international community can accompany Sudan on its transition path.

Like before, the Ministry for Foreign Affairs will be present at SuomiAreena, the most important open-air forum for public discussion organised every summer in Pori. This year, SuomiAreena will be held from 15 to 19 July 2019.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend an informal ministerial gathering of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, which will be held in Slovakia’s High Tatras on 9 July. The main theme of the meeting will be conflict prevention. Ministers will discuss opportunities to promote stability and security in the OSCE region.

On 4 July 2019, Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend the Western Balkans Summit to be held in Poznań, Poland. The main topics will be regional cooperation in the Western Balkans and strengthening the EU perspective.

“With several trade disputes going on, it is even more important than before to defend the multilateral rules-based trading system. Poor developing countries are the biggest losers in the face of growing protectionism,” stressed Minister for Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Ville Skinnari in his statement at a World Trade Organization meeting in Geneva on Wednesday on 3 July.

Finland will celebrate the opening of its Presidency of the Council of the European Union with a free summer party in Töölönlahti Park on 8 July. Europe Information of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Prime Minister’s Office, the European Commission and the European Parliament invite all comers to enjoy a summer day of informal EU-themed events in Kansalaistori (Citizen’s Square).

The EU–Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (FTA) was signed in Hanoi on 30 June 2019. The agreement is expected to enter into force in early 2020. It is the most ambitious and comprehensive agreement ever concluded by the EU with a developing country. The FTA opens up new market access and business opportunities also for Finnish companies.

Minister for Foreign Affairs Pekka Haavisto will attend the Ukraine Reform Conference, to be held in Toronto on 1–2 July. The conference will take stock of the implementation of the existing reforms and reinforce international support for Ukraine.